Note: This is in account of what happened during final interviews for airlines in the Middle East as Emirates and Qatar which can be changed anytime by the airline industry without prior notice.The aim of this article is to provide you awareness of what usually happens in a Cabin Crew Final Interview.
This is it! The last stage of the recruitment process! You’ve been screened during the Open Day with hundreds (or even thousands) of other cabin crew hopefuls, you’ve been selected to participate in the Assessment day where flight attendant recruitment staff were there to eliminate the best of the batch. Now, you’ve been called for the last part which is the Final Interview! You have one more stage to prepare for!
So what happens during the Final Interview day?
The final interview is where a recruitment officer will ask you random questions to check how eager you are to work with their airlines. A guest may be also be invited as an observer. This stage only lasts for 30 minutes up to 1 hour. However, it may actually feel like forever during that one-on-one session.
Picture yourself in a tiny room facing the interviewer full of questions and possibly a silent observer who may not say anything directly to you for the duration of the interview.
The pressure can be intense. After all, you made it this far. You don’t want to screw this up. You may start sweating despite the air-conditioning being on full blast. You may start to get really thirsty after throwing responses to your interviewer who may not show any sign that he or she is convinced with your answers. That’s just how it is.
So before going to that interview, congratulate yourself. Build the confidence that among 20 or 2000 people, you’ve been selected to be part of such a prestigious company. Don’t show any insecurity because you’ve already come this far! It’s time to dazzle them with your wit!
How Bad Do You Want It?
First things first, no matter how impressive your answers are and how stunning your personality is, they have to know how bad you want this job. Remember you are going to be a live investment for that specific airline industry.
If you pass this stage and the medical test, they are going to
1. send you on a plane for FREE until you land in the Middle East,
2. take you to your fully furnished, shared with own-bedroom flat ,
3. give you a few weeks training in their state-of-art facilities before you are even going to actually start working. Not to mention,
4. give you a sign in bonus or meal allowance.
Basically, they are going to spend a lot of money on you, even before you will become useful to them. More than anything, they want to know that after 2 or 3 weeks in the Middle East, you’re not going to raise a white flag and say that homesickness is killing you, or that cum laude degree of yours actually seem to give you a more promising future, or that long distance relationship of yours is not going well.
Your enthusiasm and eagerness, or lack of them, in answering the questions will give them queues as to how interested you are in getting the job.
Usual Final Interview Questions
Aside from the usual “tell me about yourself”, “why do you want to be a cabin crew?” and “why should we hire you?” type of questions, the interview session will be focused on scenarios. You will be given situations that you’re expected to have encountered at one point in your life. You are then instructed to identify what you did, or what you could’ve done, or how you can avoid them in the future, etc.
So what sort of scenarios do they give you? Here are a few common pointers:
1. Give a situation where you were not happy with how the waiter was serving you. What was specific problem you had and how did you deal with it?
2. Give a situation where your meal at the restaurant was not served during the waiting time they specified. What did you do?
3. Give an example of a satisfied service you received whether at a hotel, restaurant, etc.?
4. Give an example of an unsatisfactory service you received.
5. Have you ever gone into an argument with your boss or teacher because they were not right? What happened and how did you deal with it?
6. Give a situation when you and your workmates did not agree on your ideas to solve a specific problem. What was the resolution?
7. Give an example when you went out of your way to help someone.
8. Give a situation when you helped a stranger.
9. Give an example of a time when you had a good idea.
10. Give an example of a time when you coped with a stressful situation. How did it make you feel and how did you deal with it?
11. Describe an instance when you became assertive.
12. Give a situation when you had to take the lead role and what was the outcome.
13. What do you feel when someone is asking for your help?
Depending on your personality, your experiences and how bad you want this flight attendant job, the final interview day may be a very stressful day for you, or not. Either way, you’d prefer coming to war prepared with the right ammo. The whole point of relating these scenarios is to see if you understand the basic concept of customer service, that is, if at the end of the day, you are qualified to be the front line ambassador of the airline to which you are applying.
How to Answer During the Final Interview
Be very specific with your answers. Do not interrupt or argue with the interviewer. Keep a positive and friendly energy. When it’s finished, thank them for their time. Let them know how much you are looking forward to working with them to end with an optimistic perspective.
So that concludes the final interview day. The long days are over and typically, you will be given the results within 2 weeks unless otherwise specified. If you pass, you are to undergo a series of medical exams in your home country, send the results to the airline HR management and wait for them to assign you your date of joining.
Read through the stages of recruitment by flight attendant airline companies. Helpful Reads When You Apply as a Cabin Crew. Click on the links below!